Latest news with #Alakazam
Miami Herald
11-06-2025
- Sport
- Miami Herald
Woman with injured leg was running seconds after winning huge NC lottery jackpot
The North Carolina Education lottery performed something of a miracle when a woman with an injured leg suddenly began running just seconds after learning she won a six-figure prize. Marcella Hooker of Duplin County says her trouble walking is due to a recent leg injury, but that disability was quickly forgotten soon after she invested $5 in an digital online game called The Lamp: Dark Arts. She won the 'Alakazam' jackpot, which was worth $912,326.40, lottery officials said in a news release. 'After I saw that I took off running and screaming,' Hooker told lottery officials. 'I was screaming so much it woke up the kids and grandkids.' Odds of winning the 'Alakazam' prize are 1 in 12.9 million, lottery officials said. Hooker traveled from her home in Warsaw about 70 miles northwest to the lottery headquarters in Raleigh on Monday, June 9, to get her prize. It came to $654,596 after state and federal withholdings, officials said. 'Now we can pay off the house,' Hooker told lottery officials. Then, she'll go shopping for a new car, she said. Online plays in The Lamp: Dark Arts range from 50 cents to $30. After Hooker won, the game restarted with a $100,000 jackpot that will keep growing until someone else wins.
Yahoo
10-06-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Duplin County grandmother wins $912K jackpot
RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCT) — A Duplin County grandmother won a $912,326 digital instant jackpot. According to a press release, Marcella Hooker of Warsaw, 'played for $5 and won the top level 'Alakazam' jackpot in The Lamp: Dark Arts, a digital instant game featuring a progressive jackpot that can be won at any time. The odds of that win are 1 in 12.9 million.' 'I actually have had trouble walking lately because of an injury, but after I saw that I took off running and screaming,' said Hooker. Hooker claimed her prize Monday, June 9th at lottery headquarters and, after required federal and state tax withholdings, took home $654,596. 'Now we can pay off the house,' Hooker said. 'This is a blessing.' Visit for more information about winnings and digital instant games. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Miami Herald
05-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Miami Herald
Lottery player spends $5 — and scores a $912,000 jackpot prize in North Carolina
A lottery player spent $5 on a ticket — and hit the jackpot in North Carolina. On June 4, the player bought a ticket that scored the top prize in The Lamp: Dark Arts, the N.C. Education Lottery wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter. The Lamp: Dark Arts is a progressive jackpot game that offers lottery tickets starting at 50 cents. The online game features a prize wheel and digital icons that players can match to win big, rules show. It turns out, the lucky player won the top-tier 'Alakazam' jackpot, making their ticket worth $912,326, lottery officials told McClatchy News via email. A spokesperson previously told McClatchy News the lottery can't pinpoint where players are when they buy their tickets for digital instant games. But lottery officials know the jackpot winner is from the Duplin County town of Warsaw, a roughly 70-mile drive southeast from Raleigh. As of about 10:45 a.m. June 5, no one had claimed the Warsaw prize. In North Carolina, the winners of digital instant games have about six months to cash in, officials said.
Miami Herald
14-04-2025
- Business
- Miami Herald
Lottery player spends $5 — and wins a huge jackpot prize in North Carolina
A lottery player spent $5 on a ticket — and won a prize worth celebrating in North Carolina. On April 13, the player bought a Magic Winnings Vegas ticket that won the game's top prize, making it worth more than $780,000, the North Carolina Education Lottery told McClatchy News via email. Magic Winnings Vegas is a progressive jackpot game that offers online lottery tickets starting at 50 cents. To win the top-tier 'Alakazam' jackpot prize, a player must match several digital icons, per the lottery's website. A spokesperson previously told McClatchy News the lottery can't pinpoint where players are when they buy their tickets for digital instant games. But lottery officials know the $780,794 winner lives in Raeford, a roughly 80-mile drive southwest from Raleigh. As of early April 14, the lucky ticket holder hadn't claimed their prize. The winner has about six months to cash in, according to game rules. The jackpot win came during a lucky weekend in North Carolina. Another online lottery player scored $100,000, and someone else bought a ticket worth $60,414, lottery officials wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.
